Canadian report documenting murdered journalists and impunity in Honduras to be presented in Washington, D.C.

TORONTO, March 24, 2014 /CNW/ - In February 2012, Honduran journalist
Dina Meza received two text messages that threatened her with sexual
violence and death. The messages were signed Commando Alvarez Martinez,
a pseudonym that is often used in Honduras to threaten human rights
activists and journalists with torture, rape and death. The obvious
intent was to move her to stop her investigative reporting in Honduras.
Ever since the 2009 coup, 32 journalists in the country have been
murdered and many more, like Meza, continue to work in the face of such
threats. According to a recent report by PEN Canada, PEN International,
and the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law's International Human
Rights Program, titled Honduras: Journalism in the Shadow of Impunity, much of this violence is wrought by the state itself, and its corrupt
police force. These messages were not the only threats that Meza has
received and she and her three children are regularly harassed, living
in constant fear of retribution for Meza's work.

Now this week, thanks to the work of Canadians, Dina Meza will tell her
story and publicly testify in Washington D.C. about the impunity and
violence journalists like her face in Honduras.

PEN and the University of Toronto Faculty of Law's International Human
Rights Program, have been granted a public hearing before the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in Washington D.C. on
Tuesday, March 25. This is the first time that the Commission has
agreed to hear such a matter raised by the Canadian chapter of the
freedom of expression organization and the report's key points will be
read into the official record. Also, representatives of the Honduran
government will be present and will have the opportunity to publicly
respond to the report.

Honduran journalist Dina Meza will be available Monday, March 24 and
Tuesday, March 25, 2014.

Brendan de Caires, Programs and Communications, PEN Canada

Marian Botsford Fraser, Chair of PEN International's Writers in Prison
Committee will also be presenting at the Commission and is available
for interviews

PEN Canada is a nonpartisan organization of writers that works with others to
defend freedom of expression as a basic human right, at home and
abroad. PEN Canada promotes literature, fights censorship, helps free
persecuted writers from prison, and assists writers living in exile in
Canada. www.pencanada.ca

PEN International promotes literature and freedom of expression. Founded in 1921, our
global community of writers now spans more than 100 countries. Our
campaigns, events, publications and programmes aim to connect writers
and readers wherever they are in the world. PEN International is a
non-political organization which holds Special Consultative Status at
the UN and Associate Status at UNESCO. www.pen-international.org

The International Human Rights Program (IHRP) at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law enhances the legal
protection of existing and emerging international human rights
obligations through advocacy, knowledge-exchange, and capacity-building
initiatives that provide experiential learning opportunities for
students and legal expertise to civil society. ihrp.law.utoronto.ca